


Be Mine

by Baroness_Blixen



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Gen, dad!mulder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-26 11:20:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9893615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baroness_Blixen/pseuds/Baroness_Blixen
Summary: Mulder helps his son with some Valentine's blues.





	

A whiff of teenage angst hits Mulder right in the face when he enters his son's bedroom. The boy is sprawled on his stomach, doesn't move; he doesn't even stir when Mulder sits down next to him on his bed.

"Hey Will," no reaction.

"Willlll," he tries again, leaning closer.

"Come on, no sleeping in the middle of the day."

"Not sleeping." Comes the muffled answer.

"Come on, kiddo. What's the matter? I brought your favorite donuts." When it comes to processed food, Will is just like his father; he inhales burgers, donuts and basically anything that's fried.

"Dad, leave me alone please. I don't wanna talk about it." Oh yeah, and also very much his mother's son.

"Donuts, Will. Your favorites," Mulder rustles the bag loudly, "You know, gooey caramel frosting, chocolate sprinkles and-"

"No thanks, dad." Ever polite, his son. But Mulder is not giving up just yet.

"I guess I'll eat them myself then." Will doesn't react, remains in his listless position. So Mulder takes out a donut, bites into it and makes appreciative noises.

"I don't want your stupid donut, dad." This gives Mulder pause; he knows that the days are gone when his son would run inside after kindergarten or school and tell him about his day in enthusiastic details. This however is something different. Gently, Mulder touches his son's back. He's too thin, he thinks immediately, feeling his ribs. The boy eats and eats and eats, but he's also growing. Much too quickly.

"Did anything happen at school today, Will?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Do you want me to call your mother?"

"No."

"Well, all right. If you need me, I'll be downstairs." Mulder strokes Will's back once, just needing to touch him, feeling like he's losing him to something; life, most likely.

"Dad, wait." Will sighs, finally sitting up. Mulder sits back down on the bed, suppressing a smile, and waits for his son to confide in him.

"When you and mom, you know, before me… how did you? You know?" Oh, Mulder thinks. _Oh._

"You mean how did we end up together?" Will nods slowly, his blue eyes curiously staring up at him.

"You know, we worked together for seven years and-"

"Dad, I'm in high school. I don't have seven years!"

"Let me finish," Mulder says calmly, "we worked together for a long time and we were friends first before we became anything else." Will doesn't even know the half of it. All their son knows is that they used to work for the government in some very special (Mulder's words), sometimes challenging (Scully's words) environment. Will knows about the x-files, snickers whenever he hears the words or when Mulder decides their son is ready to hear about another one of their famous cases.

"Is there someone you… like?" Mulder knows he has to tread carefully here in case his son decides to clam up again.

"There's this girl," Will begins, sighing, "and I really like her." Mulder nods at his son, no longer able to stop his lips from curling upwards. He can't wait to tell Scully about this; their baby boy is in love!

"No dad, I *really* like her." Mulder has no idea what this means. Will groans in frustration and pulls a colorful card from under his pillows. He hands it to Mulder. There's so much pink and glitter that Mulder feels momentarily blinded. He focuses his eyes and reads a perfectly scrawled 'be mine' on the front. He opens the card, checks his son's face if it's all right, but the boy is just waiting for him to read more quickly.

'Dear Lisa, you're the smartest girl in my English class and you always smell like strawberries. Do you want to be Valentine?'

Mulder feels the sudden urge to reach for his son and engulf him in a tight hug. But Will stares up at him, tears shimmering in his eyes.

"I didn't give it to her, obviously. It's stupid, isn't it?"

"Oh Will, no. No, it's not stupid at all. Why didn't you give her the card?" He's one to talk; how often did he buy flowers he threw away before Scully received them? Instead of showering her with gifts, he chose to show his affection by ditching her time and again. Those times are long gone, but Mulder isn't sure he should give his son any relationship advice.

"Because!" Will throws his hands in the air and slumps down on the bed. "And it gets worse, dad. She didn't get any cards for Valentine's Day, dad. Everyone got at least one except her. I feel terrible." No donut can cure the pains of love, Mulder thinks.

"You know," he clears his throat, needs a moment to find the right words, "It's only been two days. How about you give her the card today? Tell her you forgot it at home, or you were too shy to give it to her. Honesty goes a long way, you know. Do you have any idea how often I've forgotten your mother's birthday? A late gift is still a wonderful surprise."

"You think?" Will's voice, as well as his mood, is picking up. When did his son's voice get so deep, Mulder marvels. When did he grow up into this lanky, awkward teenager?

"I do. Go and give your girl that card." Will grins and throws his arms around his father for a short hug. He stumbles over his own shoes before he picks them up to put them on his feet.

"I'm going to take my bike, dad," Will, not unlike himself, tends to ramble whenever he's excited, "but I'll be back for dinner, I promise. Can I have that donut now?" He stands before Mulder, way too tall already, and holds out his hand. Mulder gives him the bag; there are still two donuts inside and while Mulder can't be sure, he thinks Lisa might like caramel and chocolate too.


End file.
